Promoters to put Evalueserve on sale, eye $250 million valuation

Swiss family office IHAG Holdings, which has a minority stake in the company, is also exiting, people privy to the developments said.

MUMBAI: The promoters of Evalueserve, one of the oldest companies in the knowledge process outsourcing industry, are preparing to sell their majority stake 12 years after founding it. Swiss family office IHAG Holdings, which has a minority stake in the company, is also exiting, people privy to the developments said.

According to these people, UBS and Deutsche Bank are advising the promoters on the selloff. The exercise has been going on for a while, but a formal process has been initiated now. "This coming week, preliminary proposals are expected to come in from both strategic players and private equity buyout funds, which have already been sounded out," said an investment banker privy to the matter.

Marc Vollenweider, a former McKinsey professional, and Alok Aggarwal, an IBM alumnus, co-founded Evalueserve in 2000. Together with Ashish Gupta, the COO, who has been with the firm since its inception, they hold around 75% in the firm.

Growing at 40% in the last five years, Evalueserve claims to have one of the largest KPO operations in the world, providing over 4 million hours of services annually.

In 2011, it posted revenues of around $105 million and an EBIDTA of $20 million. It has a revenue per employee of $40,000, compared with the peer group average of $25,000, added an analyst tracking the company.

The promoters are believed to be expecting a valuation of 12-15 times EBIDTA, or $220-250 million, said one of the people privy to development.

Mails sent to Vollenweider, CEO and co-founder, and Aggarwal, chairman and co-founder, as well as to the company's media spokesperson did not get a response.

Evalueserve provides buy-side research, quantitative and fundamental research, and other services such as editorial and publishing services to banks and financial institutions.

Five of the top 10 global retail and commercial banks and seven of the top 10 investment banks are its clients, according to the company's website.